Mozambique: Anadarko plant works at a halt – report

1:04 CAT | 04 Mar 2019

In file CoM

Construction of the natural gas plant of US-based oil company Anadarko in northern Mozambique has been at a standstill for a week following two armed attacks on vehicles belonging to contractors, a source at the multinational told Lusa on Friday (March 1).

On Friday February 22 , Anadarko announced that convoys of vehicles belonging to companies contracted by the oil company for construction works at its natural gas plant had suffered two attacks the previous day, resulting in one worker being killed and six injured.

The attacks occurred on a road in the Mocimboa district of Praia, 20 kilometres from Afungi, in the district of Palma, both in Cabo Delgado, where Anadarko is building a liquefied natural gas processing plant.

The worker who died was from the Portuguese company Gabriel Couto, hired by Anadarko for the construction of an airstrip in Afungi.

“The safety, protection and well-being of our people is always our top priority. As such, work on the construction site has been suspended and movement is restricted,” the statement said.

The Anadarko note says that the company is in close contact with the Mozambican authorities and taking appropriate measures to protect its workers.

The attacks were the first involving companies involved in natural gas projects in northern Mozambique since destabilisation there began in October 2017.

Dozens of people, including civilians, members of the Defense and Security Forces and alleged members of the insurgent groups, have died in the violence in northern Cabo Delgado, which has forced residents of several villages to flee their homes for safer areas.